Hello! My name is Pia Blair and littlelandofpia is my label which I established in 2011. I create one off collaged and screenprinted art works on paper, from my studio at home in Geelong, Australia. I was living in Vietnam and China for the past 7 years, but migrated home to Australia to give birth and raise my little boy. I am a Fine Arts trained 30 something year old that aspires to create quirky but sentimental and original works of art just for you!

Pages

Tuesday, 12 August 2014

Thinking about ordering your very own littlelandofpia collage?

Thank you for taking the time to look at my work.

I specialize in making custom collaged art works just for you. So there are no two artworks the same, they are created with you in mind and the concepts we discuss. You can email me at littlelandofpia@hotmail.com or contact me via this blog if you wish to proceed with an order.

I generally make two different sized pieces, read below for examples and prices and information. A 28cmx38cm mixed media collage on excellent quality Arches artists' paper created especially for you is $270 AUD unframed and $370 framed in natural timber or white. My collages come 'floating' in the frame therefore without a mount, as the pieces often have 3D elements to them so they are more effectively framed in this manner. It usually takes up to a month for your piece to be professionally framed. So you should allow around 6 weeks to receive your artwork if you wish for it to be framed.

I like to think that my artworks are a quirky self portrait of the recipient, made up of images that are symbols and significant things meaningful to them. I often ask my client such things as what are their (interests, favorite places/holidays, favorite plants/flowers, sporting teams, pets, nick names, their family dynamic, occupation, heroes or anything else you or I can think of!) I then go through my collection of vintage books and gather the pictures and then arrange them into a meaningful composition often with gouache paint. These works take me 1-2 days (sometimes longer) to create, so it may take me a couple of weeks to get to you, but I can often prioritize orders if you require them sooner.

Here are some examples of my smaller sized collages.....

I also recently created this piece below (apologies for the terrible mobile phone image!) which employs this same concept as above, but on a bigger scale and uses the families home town and all of the things that make Geelong home to them. This was 56x76cm and therefore significantly bigger than the pieces above, so more expensive. Email me if you would like more information, as I can customize the size of your piece.

Larger collage works

These original hand made collages created especially for you utilize screen printing in the back ground, then spray paint and stencils over the top. I then employ the same process as the smaller pieces I described above and search high and low and gather images that best represent the recipient and the ideas we discuss together to create an original composition. You may notice my love of typography and see that I will often incorporate letters and numbers into the design. These pieces are best suited to larger wall spaces as they are often bold and command your attention. You dictate your preferred color scheme and any symbols or images that you wish to include. My larger pieces are 56x76cm and $370 AUD unframed and $570 professionally framed. Your artwork will come 'floating' in either a white or natural timber frame and without a mount.You need to allow up to 6 weeks for your piece to be made and professionally framed from the time of placing the order to receiving your framed art work.

Here are some examples of pieces I have created in recent times....

ABSTRACT STYLIZED WORKSI also create more abstract styled gouache (a type of paint) and collage pieces that are nothing like the two styles mentioned above! They are usually inspired by recent observations, sayings or trends at the time. I love using pattern, especially with paint and combining this with graphic images to create a bold and unique aesthetic. Here are some examples. I would be happy to create pieces for you, large or small and with your concept in mind if you wish. These works start at $250 unframed for 28x38cm and increase in price depending on the size that you are interested in. Email me at littlelandofpia@hotmail.com to discuss your ideas further.

I must apologise! I have neglected my blog for some time now, much longer than I care to admit! I have moved back to Australia (from our time living in Asia) and gave birth to a little baby boy named Alby. We moved to a large regional town called Geelong an hour out of Melbourne. My little family is flourishing in our new digs and love the proximity to beautiful beach spots and new places to explore. I have been a little busy with baby Alby, especially in his younger days, but am very happy to report that he is now that bit older and more predictable and I am back on my art making feet and back to making my collages again! Phewwwww! I have just updated some information such as my pricing and how to order (as seen in the 'ordering your own littlelandofpia collage' tab on the Home page). I am also addicted to Instagram and try and post images of works I have made as often as possible. I miss my beloved Vietnam and its many decadent 'fruits' but know there will be many more adventures on the horizon. I would love to hear from you (email me at littlelandofpia@hotmail.com) if you wish to have your own littlelandofpia custom collage created and look forward to hearing your ideas.Pia x

Thursday, 21 February 2013

I just wanted to share my exciting news. I'm having an exhibition! I have not had an exhibition since I left university around 10 years ago, so I am excited but naturally nervous about the reaction I may get! have been experimenting with more mixed media (gouache, graphite, pencil and collage) of late, which means there is a range of styles in the pieces I have on display. I will have the following 12 artworks on display and for sale at Hut 13 in Armadale in Melbourne for all of March. The lovely Lucy Mora acquired some of my work in her store in early 2012 and I visited her store July last year as it is a hub of creative goodness that makes you salivate its so freaking good! While I was visiting she asked whether I would be interested in showing my work in her store for all of March this year, needless to say I jumped at the chance.

Hut 13 has an instagram and Facebook page (as do I). If you like any of the work that you see you will need to contact Lucy Mora at Hut 13 to inquire about prices after March 2 through either of those aforementioned communication channels. Here is what will be hanging in store, floating in white frames. If you are in Melbourne, I would love, love, love to hear from you if you manage a visit.

Saturday, 17 November 2012

I have been to hell and back this week. The 6 works (that you see below) that I poured my heart into for the much anticipated Design Files Open House in Melbourne have been lost in a couriers warehouse in Melbourne for over a week and the company TNT refuses to conduct any further searches. The work appears to have gone without a trace. I also had another 6 pieces for a store in South Australia in the same parcel. So 12 pieces have vanished. I have been phoning them, two of my adorable mates Surinder and Caitlin (thank you so much!!!!) have been hounding them to keep looking and we got nothing. I can't believe it. I'm not sure what lesson I was meant to learn from this. It just seems so unfair.
So these art works will NOT appear in the house. I am so angry, sad, frustrated and disappointed. It's a complete nightmare!!!!! I live in Vietnam and ship artwork to Australia, literally every week. I have been doing this for a year. I have not encountered anything like this before. Of course, the biggest gig of my career so far comes around and they go missing. I am really struggling at the moment, feeling really low and lacking motivation.
I will be able to submit work into the house as long as they are framed and delivered by Tuesday 27th of November. I need to work hard this weekend to pull out some magic. Wish me luck!!! I will photograph them and share them when I can, presuming they make it in time!

This is the blog post I drafted a week ago that I was planning on sharing with you guys around the time that the house opened.

I am so thrilled that I was asked to submit 6 collages (!!) for the much anticipated and much talked about The Design Files Open House project. The Open House, is a pop-up-shop concept, where by the organizers (Lucy and Lisa-Marie) transform a Melbourne home filled with the wares of Australia's Art and Design Royalty! Last year was the first time the initiative had taken place and there were something like 5000 people that visited the house and purchased products and art that was displayed in a fully functional house over the four days. Pretty sweet hey! I'm beyond jealous that I won't be there again this year to see it in all its glory (living in Vietnam, will be home 10 days after it finishes) and see my artwork hanging along side some of my idols! The media coverage alone last year was immense, so it is without any uncertainty that I communicate how incredibly lucky I am to be a 'chosen one'! You can see who was lucky enough to be included in this seriously glorious project here. Or if you just want to see me (!!) you can see me my info and images here. My best friend of about 15 years, Emma Cleine of Lumiere Art + Co also got a ticket to ride! You can see her wares and what she will have hanging on the walls here. What I would give to crack a bottle of champagne and celebrate this occasion with her!

The Open House will be open to the public from Thursday November 29th to December the 2nd in a house in Windsor Melbourne, Australia. You will need to check the Design Files website to get the physical address closer to the date, as it has not been published as yet if you wish to check it out.

If you do not subscribe to The Design Files, you are missing out! Lucy the lady and brains behind the blog, sources new and inspiring products, houses, designers and initiatives from across Australia and publishes a post on some one or something up-and-coming daily. I was possibly the happiest lady in Vietnam on May the 14th this year when littlelandofpia was the feature story on this hugely popular blog for the day! I still can't believe that is little ol' me that all of those lovely people are talking about in the comments section!

Anyway, I just thought I would share with you the art works I would have had for sale in the Design Files Open House. I have 4 small pieces 28x38cm framed and they are $340 each and 2 larger pieces 56x76cm framed which are $680 each.

I upload artworks that I make regularly on my littlelandofpia Facebook page. If you are interested in seeing more of what I am making, check it out here....I would be so happy to have your 'thumbs up' and support.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/littlelandofpia/

I would love to hear from you if you are interested in commissioning a littlelandofpia artwork. I send to lovely people all over the world.

Sunday, 28 October 2012

Evening! Thanks for stopping by and checking out what I have been up to. Your interest and support really does mean the world to me. Thank you to all of you near and far that send me positive feedback on my work. You are the best!I have uploaded a few images onto my littlelandofpia Facebook page over the past week of some experimental works I have been developing with gouache, graphite pencil and collage. I was feeling the need to try other things in my work and have always shied away from paint, but whilst away on our motorbike trip I was thinking about how I could develop layering effects in the background and negative space in my works on paper, and thought that gouache may do the trick. I really like gouache as it has a more transparent consistency to traditional acrylic paints (that I have used in the past) and I found a box of paints with some great pastel and neon colors in a back street art supply shop in Hanoi whilst visiting recently. These three pieces are off to The Assembly Hall in Williamstown, Melbourne, Australia and will be framed in neon pink wooden box frames. They should be in store in 3 weeks. These works will be apart of a more affordable art range that I am developing. So smaller in size and therefore less expensive to frame. I will post more on my Facebook page as I develop more.

They are a little hard to read...but #1 says "Rocking the suburbs", #2 says "A top bird" and #3 says "Cool like a Ken Done doona cover". The Australians out there that grew up in the 80's like myself, should understand what this means!.....xx

Saturday, 20 October 2012

I have just returned from a week up in the North of Vietnam. My husband and I hired motorbikes in Ha Giang and rode around 500 kilometres north to the border of China up and around Dong Van. I couldn't recommend this trip any more. We encountered very few tourists and it was the most authentic travel experience I have had in 4 years in this country. The landscape was sensational and that was amplified when experiencing it on a motorbike. If you live in Vietnam or plan on traveling this great country it will be one of the best trips you can do.